A Hero's Journey
by Valkyreia
Summary: "A hero's journey was set to unfold, with many a challenge to be faced and lessons to be learned. And as I spent the rest of the day hunting slimes and completing quests, I was truly heedless to the fact that my real adventure had only just begun."


The howling of the wind drifted through the trees without end, causing the hairs on my neck to stand up. A small shiver permeated my body as I stood at the top of the staircase, bow in hand, staring down at the town of Roumen.

I studied the map in my hands. A few murmurings of confusion escaped me as I flipped the gold-tinted scroll sideways and upside down, perplexed by its inscriptions and their meanings. My attempts to examine it from various angles proved hopeless. I, an archer who somehow possessed a bow yet no arrows, was desperately lost. I sighed, muttering to myself, "So much for that."

I looked up from the map and resumed my contemplation. An oceanic stench filled the air, sickening me to the core and compelling a permanent grimace upon my face. I hated the ocean. And fish. And ships. And anything related to the blasted sea.

Unfortunately for me, Roumen was Isya's most bustling seaport - Isya's only seaport, to be precise. With a theme as aquatic as its odor, the town's stone walls were coated in cerulean paint, as were its fish-inspired fountains and seahorse-shaped clock towers. Putting aside the fact that the place smelled of whale breath and fishermen's feet, there truly was quite a homey vibe surrounding the area.

Why was I there if I abhorred the sea, one might wonder. I was embarking on a journey to become a hero of Isya; to do this, I had to kill monsters and gain experience. The more experience I gained, the better gear I could obtain. Sounds simple, doesn't it?

It's not.

Especially when you're an archer. No one likes archers. Not even archers like archers. Archers are virtually useless in most people's eyes - to them, pulling a bow and shooting an arrow takes no special skill or technique. Anyone can do it. But, I'm here to prove that archers are strong. Well, maybe not strong but, well, not-

"Useless," I murmured. "Useless bloody map."

I crumpled the scroll up and stuffed it in my leather backpack, taking a deep breath as I made my way down the long, sky-blue flight of stairs. As I neared the bottom, I spotted a woman standing on a box - her orange hair was adorned with a big red bow and a bright red headband - and for a moment, I wondered if her muscles ached, not from any physical activities, but because of her undeviating smile. There was a small crowd of people surrounding her - carrying maces, shields, wands, and the like - and she seemed to be making an important announcement.

"And that's about it. Hurry on, then!" I managed to catch only the final scraps of her speech. The crowd hurriedly dispersed and I was soon left standing alone with a dumbfounded look on my face.

"Hello there, I'm Element Helper Remi. How may I be of assistance, young man?" she beamed at me with that unwavering smile of hers.

"Huh? Oh… I was just looking around," my voice shook a bit, and I quickly cleared my throat. "Um… What were you telling those people?"

"Ah," Remi nodded slightly, straightening her back. For a moment, I found myself wondering why she was standing on a box, but I quickly forced myself to focus on what she was saying. "They were being briefed on the beginner's guidelines. They were looking to become heroes of Isya!" she explained, staring at me with her warm blue eyes.

"I see…" I said. "Would you mind briefing me on those guidelines as well?"

* * *

"Slimes," I murmured.

I walked up the staircase and glanced around woefully, like a lost puppy searching desperately for its owner. "Slimes, slimes, slimes… Where are those bloody slimes?"

"You should stop talking to yourself before someone hears you, bow-boy," I heard a voice behind me. I turned around and was greeted by the sight of a tall young man, an arrogant smile spread wide across his face. His wavy dark hair was swept over his eyes like the twigs of a broom, and he donned a dashing red suit. It looked as though he'd stepped right out of a Victorian novel - a really bad one, considering the fact that I'm sure none contain sword-gripping, shield-clenching characters.

I quickly turned around and picked up my pace, not wanting to waste any time entertaining his snide remark.

"Hey, come back. What's your name?" I heard him call out. I turned back around and narrowed my eyes at him.

"Ari," I spoke up. "My name's Ari."

"Ari?" he grimaced, taking a small step back. "Sounds like a girl's name."

"Yeah, okay. Do you know where I can find slimes?"

"Wow, bow-boy, my name's Kael. Thanks for asking," he rolled his eyes.

I repeated my question, furrowing my eyebrows in irritation. "Do you know where the slimes are?"

"Keep walking straight. If you see two statues of mermaids playing harps, you're on the right path. The slimes live on the grasslands," he explained thoroughly, twirling his sword in his hand as he spoke.

"Alright, thanks a bunch," I said, readying myself for the walk. "Also, do you know where I can get arrows?"

"Arrows?" he furrowed his eyebrows. "You get arrows as soon as you step through the beginner's gate. God, do you know anything? Here, check your backpack," he sheathed his sword and stepped towards me. Before I could even mouth a protest, he began fumbling through my backpack and pulling me backwards along with it. I stumbled and attempted to regain my balance as his rough hands continued violating my items.

"Excuse me, you-"

"There you go!" he exclaimed. I turned heatedly around to look at him, straightening myself from the assault as I prepared to give him a piece of my mind. Except I didn't. In his hands was a proudly-clutched arrow - one, single, blasted arrow.

I must have been looking at him like he was a mad man - he clicked his tongue in disapproval and explained, "It's an infinite arrow. You only need one, and you'll never run out. You're not from here, are you?"

"How… does that work?" I questioned skeptically, genuinely baffled by the concept of an 'infinite arrow'. _And he's looking at me like I'm the crazy one._

"It's Isyan magic. It fills the realms of Isya and makes sure that goofs like you run into as little problems as possible when completing quests - you shoot the arrow, and it hits the monster, but it never leaves your side. Infinite shots."

I stared at him in astonishment for a brief moment. "Oh, yeah, that makes sense!" It didn't. "Thanks."

I made my way towards the grasslands, following his directions as I looked out for the mermaid statues he mentioned. I heard faint footsteps following behind me and I glanced back, inwardly groaning as I spotted him shadowing my every move. Great.

"Keep going, bow-boy, I wanna see this," he urged me with a cavalier smirk on his face. I ignored him as I kept my pace, focusing my attention on the task at hand: find the slimes.

The heat of the afternoon sun descended upon me as I stepped out of the surrounding buildings' shadows. I looked up, squinting my eyes and bringing a hand up to block the light, but I found myself beaming brighter than those very sunbeams as I identified two mermaid statues. I hiked past them, towards the shade of the trees ahead - the comforting smell of fresh soil and grass masked the fishy odor of the town. This was it! Slimes, here I come!

Except, I was vastly disappointed by what greeted me.

"These are… slimes?" I questioned, turning around to give Kael a puzzled look. Alas, he was nowhere to be seen, and I sighed in exasperation as I scrutinized the tiny purple monsters with a raised eyebrow. They looked surprisingly adorable, the little purple blobs roaming around innocently, and their pudgy bodies were capped with small points on their heads - like small grape-flavored ice creams, without their cones.

I heard chuckling from behind a tree and turned hastily. The culprit appeared from his hiding spot, and he shook his head with a hearty smile. "That's right, those are what you're looking for. The red 'x' on their heads? Targets."

"I… I can't kill these!" I protested, staring at the blameless purple blobs in trepidation. "I was expecting big, strong monsters. Not… cute, harmless creatures."

I realized as the words left me that I may as well have begun packing up my things and ending my journey right then and there. How could I become a hero if I couldn't even kill the first monsters on my path? I swallowed my emotions and mustered up the courage to place my arrow in position, pulling on the string of my bow and aiming it towards one of the little critters. Its cheeks were flushed pink as it bounced happily around the grass, and I muttered a quiet apology as I aimed for its head.

It let out a small yelp of pain as the arrow entered its body.

I was more shocked by the magic of my arrow than I was by the rush of the kill. Staring at the arrow still in position, I found what Kael had said to be true - it did its job, but it had never left my side. My moment of astonishment was cut short by the sound of slow clapping behind me, and I gritted my teeth as I turned back to express my annoyance. Unsurprisingly, a snarky remark left Kael's lips, "Impressive, bow-boy. But let me show you how it's done."

He strolled towards one of the creatures, whistling along for the full effect, before slicing it with his sword in a clean, sweeping motion. The monster stood no chance; it couldn't even cry in agony before its lifeless body slumped to the ground. Poor little guy.

"Save it, I don't have time for your dramatics," I stated in irritation as I aimed my arrow and made another kill. I did it a few more times, Kael watching me from the side like a hawk stalking its prey, and I could feel his eyes judging my every move.

"You know, you're gonna be here a while if you don't accept any quests before killing those things," he commented at one point, and my eyes widened as I realized my mistake.

"Where do I accept them?"

"Can't tell you, you're too good for my dramatics."

I rolled my eyes with a groan, and I could practically feel the cocky grin spreading across his face. I shot him a pleading look, not wanting to waste any more time playing mind games, but all he could offer was an unsympathetic shrug.

This was going to be a long day.

An agonizing stretch of take-backs, apologies and beseeching faces ensued before Kael finally gave in and told me where to go. In hindsight, I could've saved much more time and dignity had I confided in a nearby townsman, and it was with an exasperated stroll that I rushed headlong through the growing crowds of the town center, putting this hard-earned information to good use. Through the routes I roamed and townsmen I met, I accepted a multitude of exciting quests and even managed to lose Kael along the way.

I look back on these old memories with fondness and a strong sense of nostalgia. From the other side of this saga, it feels as though it has all lasted but a day or two, but I chuckle now at the blankets of oblivion and ignorance that plagued my vision at the beginning of this adventure. When things so simple and obvious to me now had been completely unknown, and when the friends I so cherish had been nothing but bothersome strangers.

A hero's journey was set to unfold, with many a challenge to be faced and lessons to be learned. And as I spent the rest of the day hunting slimes and completing quests, I was truly heedless to the fact that my real adventure had only just begun.


End file.
